Colour blocking: How not to look like a Clown or pack of Crayons..

For a fashion junkie this year, the best thing wouldn’t be just picking up a pink shirt, a purple jacket and orange pants; it would be teaming them together. Trust the Gods of fashion (pick - Gucci, Jil Sander or Josh Goot etc.) if you dare to pair, you’d be flaunting colour blocking, the trend of the season.

Colour blocking was the top trend at the recent Milan Fashion Week. The whole point of colour blocking is to sport chunks of colours you never thought you can be seen in. Some stylish celebrities we love ditched the monotony of ‘matching’ colours this season and stepped out with blocks of colours in smart cuts.

 Colour blocking is so inherent to Indian dressing that we needn’t even try too hard to get the look right. Fashion designer Wendell Rodricks says he has been designing sarees using colour blocking since 1992. “In the West, Yves Saint Laurent did colour blocking because of his roots in Morocco. To throw an aquamarine with red is easy for an Indian but for the West it speaks of newness... and it comes from the East.” If you want to stay safe, you may pair pastel shades with each other or with black. Throw in a lilac or pink blazer with blue pants, or a pastel green cardigan with black pants.

The trend, however, really comes to life if you get bolder.

Designer Masaba Gupta and a host of other designers has colourblocked in all their collections recently,

The rule in colour blocking is that there are no rules. So you can pair a coral skirt with a burgundy shirt, and royal blue pants with orange shirts. “I would still advise caution,” says designer Nachiket Barve. Everyone, he says, can colour block to an extent, but if you’re going all out with neons and reds, give your personality some thought. “Draw attention to your quirkiness, but don’t try too hard by pairing every bright colour in your closet. My advice: Don’t do it if you aren’t sure of it. You don’t want to end up looking like a Freaking Clown Start by colour blocking with monochromatic colours. For instance, a rust colour skirt paired with an orange top that’s 2-3 shades lighter looks fun.

Give your accessories and shoes a lot of thought, say designers. Having blocks of four colours in your outfit and three in your shoes will only make you look like a pack of crayons. “If you pick up a colour blocked shoe in blue and mustard, go for a smartly-cut dress in one colour only. Ditto if your handbag is colour blocked. Sport a blingy neckpiece with two blocks of colours in your dress. Trends are about common sense,”

Colour blocking is for all body shapes and sizes. Play with layers if you’re large. If you’re short, don’t wear dresses that cut colours too boldly. “No browns or striking colours if your hips are heavy,” . Wear colours vertically, not horizontally . “If you’re short, I’d suggest a pencil turquoise dress with a block of colour running down your front or the side.”So please block the colours and not your brains. lol!

(Its still your life, so live it your way and life would certainly be lovely...XOXO! with luv D@fy...)